PharmaTelevision - Biota Focuses on the Future

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Video title: Biota Focuses on the Future

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As one of the longest surviving Australian biotech companies, Biota Holdings has a varied and high profiled history. Dr Leigh Farrell talks of the future of the company following the recent litigation process and settlement with GSK and how the company is back strongly focusing its resources on its drug discovery pipeline. For a cash strong company, like Biota, he sees the economic climate as an opportunity to build and he intends to make the most of it, seeking quality opportunities during his international travels.

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Biota: Products pipeline and the partnering deals

Fintan Walton:

Hello and welcome to PharmaVentures Business review here in Melbourne, Australia. On this show I've Leigh Farrell who is Vice President of Business Development at Biota Holdings. Welcome to the show.

Leigh Farrell:

Hi Fintan Walton.

Fintan Walton:

Leigh Farrell, Biota is a company that was founded back in 1987. It's one of the sort of longest surviving biotech companies I suppose in Australia. It's also had a recently high profile both internally and externally.

Leigh Farrell:

Indeed it has, yes.

Fintan Walton:

Yeah, not yet throughRelenza but it has behind that story a lot of other activities, So the company is described as an anti-infective company so at the moment keeping Relenza aside for the moment just looking at the pipeline what's actually happening at Biota right now?

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Leigh Farrell

Vice president, Business Development

Dr Leigh Farrell was appointed Vice President, Business Development on 24 April 2006. Prior to joining Biota, Dr Farrell spent approximately 4 years as an Associate Director at GBS Ventures Partners Limited, a specialist Life Sciences Venture Capital Fund. Dr Farrell previously held the positions of Research Manager at Johnson & Johnson Research Pty Ltd and Chief Executive Officer of Gene Shears Pty Limited. Dr Leigh Farrell has extensive international experience in corporate finance, business development, licensing, relationship management and intellectual property portfolio management in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.

Biota holdings

Biota is a leading anti-infective drug development company, based in Melbourne, Australia. Biota's initial success was the discovery of zanamivir, the first-in-class neuraminidase inhibitor for the treatment and prevention of influenza.Relenza is used to treat seasonal influenza and is currently being stockpiled by various governments for defence against possible pandemic outbreaks of avian (bird) influenza. In 2008, Biota commenced Phase IIA clinical trials of its human rhinovirus (HRV) drug for the prevention and treatment of one of the major causes of the common cold which is also thought to be a major cause of exacerbations in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma. The Companies research pipeline also extends beyond respiratory diseases, including early stage research targeting the hepatitis C virus (HCV).